Andy Murray knows exactly what kind of welcome to expect from the French crowd when he walks out to face Gael Monfils today. And it is unlikely to be: ‘Bienvenue mon ami’.

In these parts they have an enveloping passion for tennis rarely found across the Channel, at least outside Wimbledon fortnight, and the charismatic Monfils is their last standard bearer at the national Grand Slam.

The attraction of this quarter-final is such that they have put the match on Roland Garros’s main Court Philippe Chatrier, thus bumping the repeat of last year’s final between Rafael Nadal and David Ferrer across to the Suzanne Lenglen arena.

Hot recption: Andy Murray knows he will be cast as the villain when he meets Gael Monfils in the French Open

Patriot games: Gael Monfils is the last Frenchman left in the draw at Roland Garros

Drop shot: Andy Murray

Murray and Monfils have met here before, in a far less high-profile first-round clash in 2006, which the Frenchman won in five sets.

The only other marquee French name Murray has played at Roland Garros is Richard Gasquet in 2012. The Scot was roundly jeered as he walked on to court, and again when he lost the first set, before recovering to hammer a notoriously brittle opponent.

Murray has described the crowd here as ‘ferocious’. His game is respected in France but he is not remotely adored in the same way as, for example, the francophone Roger Federer. It will help that he has played three away Davis Cup ties in the past nine months.

‘I’m not expecting the crowd to be for me and I look forward to that because it doesn’t often happen where the whole crowd is against you,’ he said. ‘Even in Davis Cup in Italy (last month), we had some great support there, so it’s going to be a good experience for me.’

Some shrivel in this situation while others grow. Murray is in the latter category, as oppression brings out his belligerent side.

It is heartening that the back surgery he underwent is finally beginning to pay a dividend, with the extra rotation gained on his backhand a particular bonus. After beating Fernando Verdasco he was the most upbeat he has been about his physical condition this year.

Hot Scot: Murray smiles after beating Frenchman Richard Gasquet at the 2012 French Open in Paris

‘The way I’m hitting my backhand now is 10 times better than it was last year,’ he said. ‘Moving to that side as well is so much better than it was.

‘There were periods this year when I had some problems, but that is to be expected with surgery. It’s starting to get better slowly and I’m close to being back to 100 per cent.

‘That’s exciting for me especially at this stage of the year with a big few weeks around the corner.

‘That was what I was hoping, what I was planning for. The Australian Open was always going to be tough for me to be 100 per cent in terms of match fitness but I did OK there and hopefully between now and the end of the year I can play like this.’

Crazy legs! Gael Monfil's elastic movement will make him a difficult proposition for Andy Murray

Monfils, an adversary of Murray’s from the age of 10, has a strong record at Roland Garros but his good run here has been rather unexpected; his last tournament was back in late April, after which he struggled with ankle problems.

In a bizarre third round against Fabio Fognini he cramped badly in the fourth set before storming back to win the fifth. One thing that is for sure is that his legs, which contort themselves in the most remarkable way to retrieve the ball, will be made to work phenomenally hard by the Scot.

They have met five times and Murray leads 3-2. Monfils will be the third successive high-class opponent ranked in the 20s that Murray has come across this fortnight. If he plays today like he did on Monday against Verdasco he will extend his head-to-head lead to 4-2.

On a roll: Andy Murray celebrates after beating Fernando Verdasco in the previous round

The pugnacious Ferrer goes into his battle with a win already this year over Nadal on clay. The champion’s opposition thus far has been gentle, and his compatriot will give him a far greater test than he has been through to date.

Nadal dropped into the conversation at the weekend that his back was causing him pain and affecting his serve.

The state of his body is often a mystery but if there really is a problem then Ferrer will be good enough to exploit it.